Amazing Apple Cake

Some friends of ours from Hillsdale brought a bunch of apples when they came to visit last week. And what better to do with a bunch of apples than to make an amazingly delicious, moist cake? It's funny. I never really liked cake until I started making my own... so from someone who doesn't really like store-bought cake that's really light and fluffy, I think this cake is just about the best I've ever had. (If I do say so myself.)

Here's the recipe:

CAKE
2 eggs
3 cups white flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup oil
1/2 cup applesauce
1 tbs vanilla
3 cups chopped, peeled apples

ICING
Combine 6 oz cream cheese, 1/4 cup melted butter, a dash of vanilla, and 2-3 cups of confectioner's (powdered) sugar. If the frosting doesn't seem stiff enough, just keep mixing in more sugar until the consistency seems right. This should make around 2 cups of frosting, maybe a little more.

1. First, you should probably grease two cake pans and set them aside. Also, set the oven to about 350F.

In a smallish bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and a dash of salt. (so, basically all the dry things except the sugar.)

2. In a large bowl (this will be your main mixing bowl), combine the sugars, oil, eggs, vanilla, and applesauce (I just used a couple extra apples to make the applesauce: chopped and cooked in a saucepan with a little water and no sugar.) You should make sure that everything is well combined and then gradually add in the dry mixture, beating with your mixer after each addition. After everything is combined, stir in the apples.

3. Pour half of the batter into each of the cake pans, and bake them for 20-30 minutes. It will be moist, so if it looks like it's almost done, check it every couple minutes until the toothpick comes out clean. I very nearly burned the cake when I made it. If your oven cooks on the hot side, you might want to set it for 300F instead of 350F and just cook them for a little longer.

4. While you're waiting for the cakes to cool, you'll have plenty of time to make the icing. After you let the cakes cool completely, set one layer on a flat surface or cake plate if you have one. Spread a good portion (maybe 1/2 cup) of the frosting along the top of the layer. This will be in the inside of the cake. You should have at least a cup and a half of frosting for the outside of the cake, so setting that aside, you can use whatever is left for the inside layer. Then, with the other layer on top of the first, use the rest of the icing to spread over the top and the sides.

5. Keep it in the fridge. It will be easier to cut if it's cold, and it shouldn't last long enough to dry out.... Enjoy!